Magazine for feeding belted ammunition to automatic firearms



8. Novo'rm'r ETAL July 22, 1969 I MAGAZINE FOR FEEDING BELTED AMMUNITION 1'0 AUTOMATIC FIREARMS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 29. 1968 INVENTORSZ Baht/543V lvovonw' KER/Mir and}? Jul 22, 1969 NOVOTNY Em 3,456,553

MAGAZINE FOR FEEDING BELTED AMMUNITION TO AUTOMATIC FIREARMS Filed Jan. 29, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENIOR'S: I T Balms/av A/OVOTNY i 1 5 1411 (ERMA/f f/m'r AH rne I United States Patent US. Cl. 8933 5 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A magazine for automatic firearms in which the interior of the magazine for belted ammunition is divided by a fixed partition and a movable spring-loaded vane into an ammunition space and an empty belt space. The movable vane is urged against the belted cartridges in the ammunition space so as to hold the belt tightly together. The vane follows the receding belt, thereby at the same time augmenting the space receiving the empty belt. The vane is controlled from the outside by an arm, which indicates on a scale the number of cartridges available in the magazine.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a magazine for automatic firearms, in which the cartridges are accommodated in a cartridge belt.

A great variety of magazines for automatic firearms are known at present, such as box-type, segment type, drum-type and the like magazines. A pre-stressed magazine spring or a mechanical impulse imparted by the firearm mechanism is used for feeding the cartridges to the cartridge chamber. Further known is a revolving rifle magazine, comprising a drum, carrying a starwheel with a blocking cog wheel, the teeth of the starwheel being adapted for engagement through mechanical means with a groove arranged in the breech cylinder and the blocking cog wheel being adapted for cooperation with a spring dog mounted in the casing of the revolving rifle magazine.

A disadvantage encountered in some of these magazines is the limited, relatively small number of cartridges, which can be accommodated in the magazine, as well as its relatively large dimensions, caused by the necessity of providing sufiicient space for the follower spring. Other magazine types, on account of their complexity, are not only expensive to produce but also highly vulnerable, as a slight damage or deformation of their working surface may impair the correct operation of the magazine. The above-mentioned revolving rifle magazine is disadvantageous, as upon closing of the breech mechanism, the cartridge is only pushed nearer to the cartridge chamber and not until the breech mechanism is opened and retracted, is the cartridge brought into the feeding path under the action of the spring dog engaging said blocking cog wheel, so that the cartridge is not fed into the barrel until the breech mechanism is closed again.

Further known are magazines in which the cartridges are mounted in a cartridge belt for easier handling and maneuverability of the gun. Such magazines may be of various design and usually are arranged so as to be fixed to the gun. One design of such a magazine has a casing substantially of frusto-conical shape and the loaded cartridge belt is loosely placed in the interior of the magazine casing.

3,455,553 Patented July 22, 1969 "ice The known types of automatic gun magazines suffer from a number of disadvantages. If, for instance, the magazine is partially emptied, the gun may fail to operate, because the cartridge belt does not fill the entire inner space of the magazine, but lies loosely therein and its links may easily become entangled. The emptied cartridge belt is discharged from the gun, during its operation, to the outside and may interfere with the operators movements, may become soiled, damaged, etc. If a cartridge belt is used which disintegrates after a certain number of shots has been fired, still other drawbacks may appear. A part of the cartridge belt, when separated from the rest, gets almost invariably lost and moreover there is no indication of the number of cartridges already fired from the belt or of the number still remaining in the magazine.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the invention to provide a magazine for automatic firearms, in which the loaded cartridge belt is subjected to a force keeping the belt tightly together and urging it, as a whole, towards the mouthpiece of the magazine, so that any entanglement of the belt links is obviated.

Another object of the invention is to provide a magazine for automatic firearms, in which the empty cartridge belt does not leave the magazine at all during normal operation of the gun.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a magazine for automatic firearms in which an ammunition space and an empty belt space of variable volume are provided, said empty belt space receiving the empty parts of the belt and increasing in volume at the same rate as the ammunition space diminishes due to the cartridges being withdrawn from the belt by the gun mechanism and the belt receding as a Whole towards the mouthpiece of the magazine.

A further object of the invention is to provide a magazine for automatic firearms which affords the gunner an instantaneous information about the number of unspent cartridges still available in the magazine.

The present invention provides a magazine containing two spaces of variable size, one of which holds the belted ammunition and the other receives the emptied cartridge belt, said two spaces being separated on the one hand by a fixed partition and on the other hand by a movable spring-loaded vane bearing in its operative position on the full cartridge belt and following its receding movement when being emptied by the gun mechanism, while the empty belt space increases.

The vane is preferably arranged as a radially extending rotary member which is rigidly connected to a control and indicator arm placed at the outside of the magazine and serving for shifting and fixing the vane in a position, in which the magazine can be charged with belted ammunition also for indicating the number of cartridges still available in the magazine.

The accompanying drawings illustrate a possible embodiment of the invention in connection with one selected form of a feeding mechanism.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIGURE 4 shows an elevational rear view of the magazine,

FIGURE is the corresponding sideview, and FIGURE 6 is a cross-sectional view of the magazine.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring first to FIGURES 1 to 3, it will be seen that the magazine comprises an open mouthpiece 1 consisting of two collapsible lids 2, 2' detachably secured to a magazine casing 3, which in the example illustrated in the drawings has the shape of a drum. The attachment of the open mouthpiece 1 to the casing 3 can be accomplished by any known connection means, such as eyelets 4 and pins 5, 6. Mounted for rotation in the open mouthpiece 1 of the magazine is a feeder 7 with two flanges 8, provided with teeth (not illustrated), seats (not illustrated) for the belted cartridges 11 being arranged between said teeth 9. One end of the feeder 7 carries a ratchet wheel 12, which is subjected to the pressure of a spring 13, mounted on the shaft 14 of the feeder 7. The opposite end of the feeder 7, outside the open mouthpiece 1, is rigidly coupled to a starwheel 15.

When the magazine is inserted in a receiver 16 of a firearm (FIG. 1), where it is secured e.g. by a springloaded catch 17, the starwheel 15 is in engagement with a rocket lever 18 through a dog 19 (FIG. 3), forced into engagement with the starwheel 15 by means of a spring 20. The rocking lever 18 is pivotally mounted by means of its pin 21 in the receiver 16 and is provided with a roller 22 engaging a helical groove 23 arranged in the breech 24, which is slidably housed in the receiver 16 of the firearm.

The cartridge having been fired, the breech 24 recoi-ls in the receiver 16, for example under the action of powder gases. The helical groove 23 imparts a rocking motion to the rocker lever 18, which causes the starwheel 15 to turn along with the rigidly connected feeder 7 through one pitch of the cartridge belt 25. Simultaneously with the rotation of the feeder 7 the ratchet wheel 12 is rotated by one tooth, whereby the cartridge 11 is secured in its loading position, i.e. in alignment with the cartridge chamber of the barrel 27. During forward movement of the breech 24, its front wall (not illustrated) pushes the next cartridge 11 from the cartridge belt 25 into the cartridge chamber 26 of the barrel 27. Hereupon the above described cycle is repeated.

The casing 3 is provided with a partition 28 positioned between the central shaft 29 of the casing 3 and the lids 2, 2'. The central shaft 29 is mounted for rotation in two end walls 30, 31 of the casing 3 and is secured at one end against axial movement by suitable means, such as a lock-plate 32. Fixed to the other end of the central shaft 29 outside the casing 3 is a control and indicator arm 33 carrying a button 34 having an opening 35. An opening 36 is arranged in the end wall 30 of the casing 3, both openings 35 and 36 having the same diameter and being located at the same radial distance from the central shaft 29.

Inside the casing 3 a radial vane 37 is rigidly mounted on the central shaft 29 and is biased by a spring 38 in relation to the partition 28 in a clockwise direction as viewed in FIG. 6. The partition 28 and the radial vane 37 divide the interior of the casing 3 into an ammunition space 39 adapted to hold a full cartridge belt 25 and a space 40 for receiving the empty cartridge belt 41. A scale 42 provided on the end wall 30 serves for indicating the number of cartridges 11 remaining in the magazine, which number is indicated by the control and indicator arm 33 travelling along the scale 42.

When charging the magazine, the pin 5 is first pulled out in order to release the lid 2, which is tilted away and the empty cartridge belt 41 is taken out from the space 40. In order to permit insertion into the magazine of a full cartridge belt 25, the control and indicator arm 33 and thereby also the radial vane 37 have to be turned in counterclockwise direction, as viewed in FIG. 6, against the pressure of the spring 38, so as to increase to the maximum the ammunition space 39, which is to receive the full cartridge belt 25. The arm 33 can be secured in this position by the pin 5 fitted into the opening 35 of the button 36, which-in this positionis in register with the opening 36 provided in the end Wall 30 of the casing 3. After the full cartridge belt 25 has been inserted into the ammunition space 39, the pin 5 is pulled out and the arm 33 thus released. The pin is returned into the eyelet 4 connecting the casing 3 with the lid 2 now in closed position. The magazine, charged in this way, is secured to the gun in any known manner. The number of cartridges 11 still remaining in the magazine after the gun has been fired, is shown by the position of the arm 33 on the scale 42.

While the magazine embodying the invention has been shown in connection with the particular design of a magazine and of a gun represented in the drawing, it will be readily understood that it may equally well be used in connection with a wide variety of magazine types and automatic firearms.

The magazine according to the invention offers numerous advantages over known arrangements. In the first place it is the reliability of its operation, due to the cartridge belt being placed inside the magazine and kept under permanent pressure in compacted conditions, so that its uncontrolled movement and entanglement of its links are prevented. The emptied cartridge belt does not leave the gun, but remains in the magazine and is thus protected against soiling, damage or loss. The number of unspent rounds can easily be observed. A considerable advantage is also to be seen in the fact, that the entire inner space of the magazine is permanently utilized for the accommodation of full and empty parts of the belt, which increases the economy of the whole arrangement.

We claim:

1. A magazine for automatic firearms capable of storing belted ammunition and feeding it to the loading space of the firearm, comprising in combination:

(a) a magazine casing adapted to be connected to the (b) a displaceable lid connected to the magazine casing and forming an open mouthpiece for the passage of cartridges from the cartridge belt into the firearm,

(c) feeding means operatively mounted in said magazine casing for feeding the belted ammunition to the open mouthpiece of the magazine,

((1) a fixed dividing member rigidly mounted in the interior of the magazine casing,

(e) a movable dividing member mounted for displace ment in the interior of the magazine casing,

(f) actuating means operatively connected to said movable dividing member and acting on said movable dividing member to impart a pressure force thereto,

(g) said fixed dividing member and movable dividing member dividing the interior of the magazine casing into an ammunition space and an empty belt space of variable sizes, the movable dividing member being adapted to bear forcibly on the belted ammunition in the ammunition space and to follow its receding movement towards the mouthpiece of the magazine.

2. A magazine as set forth in claim 1, wherein:

(a) a central shaft is mounted for rotation in the magazine casing,

(b) said fixed dividing member is mounted on a central shaft mounted inside the magazine casing and extends from the central shaft to the feeding means,

(c) said movable dividing member comprising a movable vane mounted for rotary movement on the central shaft,

(d) said actuating means comprising a spring adapted to exert pressure on the radial vane to impart rotary movement thereto, said fixed dividing member and movable vane being adapted to divide the interior of the magazine casing into two spaces of variable volume, one of said two spaces serving for the accommodation of a loaded cartridge belt and the other for receiving the emptied cartridge belt, the radial vane bearing on the full cartridge belt and exerting pressure thereon in the direction towards the mouthpiece of the magazine.

3. A magazine as in claim 2, wherein the magazine casing is of a drum shape, the fixed dividing member, as well as the movable vane extending radially from the central shaft which carries at one of its ends a control and indicator arm provided with fixing means serving to fix the arm and the movable vane in a position for the insertion of a full belt into the ammunition space.

4. A magazine as in claim 3, wherein the magazine casing is provided with a scale cooperating with said con- References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2/1924 Rockwell. 6/1926 Russell et al 8933 BENJAMIN A. BORCHELT, Primary Examiner S. C. BENTLEY, Assistant Examiner 

